The United States has historically tested low on international testing, and California has historically tested very low compared to the rest of the country. The NAEP tests (National Assessment of Educational Progress) have been called "The Nation's Report Card" because NAEP has been testing students for many, many years. A look at the 1996 NAEP math testing of fourth graders depicts California at the very bottom of the list, tied with Louisiana and above only Mississippi, Guam and the District of Columbia. California tested at the very bottom of the recent NAEP study as cited by the recent Rand Corporation Report. This Rand study also found that high socio-economic California students also ranked very poorly, and ranked at the bottom.

Many mathematicians amd math teachers at the college and university level in California have been extremely concerned about the poor quality of K-12 math education in our state. A number of them have participated publicly to improve the quality of instruction.

As described in this e-mail, Professor David Klein, mathematics professor at California State University, Northridge, was propelled into action by both the dramatic increase in the number of freshmen needing remediation in math and his awareness of the gaps in his daughter's school-based math program. The number of freshmen needing remediation was 23% in 1989 before it swelled to 52% in 1995. It was at 54% in 1998.

California's Math Content Standards and Frameworks are a result of a groundswell of activity by parents, mathematicians and educators.and education.

California Math Content Standards are World Class, Rigorous and Demanding

California's challenging math standards are called the California Mathematics Content Standards. They are a grade by grade description of what should be taught and what children should learn at each grade level. The California Math Frameworks contain the Math Content Standards as well as information about implementation. The Frameworks identify the key standards at each grade level. Parents, teacher and business leaders who want demanding, challenging and rigorous math content will be very pleased.

A College Board funded national task force looked at minority achievement and concluded that higher standards are critical to achievement. The California Math Content Standards have raised math standards for all children in the state.

Reaching the Top, a National Task Force report about minority students concluding that higher standards are critical to achievement.

Mountain View Achievement stands for the belief that our children deserve the highest standards and that when they are given the opportunity, they will achieve. Children in the district have not been given such opportunity because the Mountain View K-8 School District has not aligned its math program with the state standards. Its sixth and seventh graders use Connected Math Program which was specifically disapproved by the state because it is below state standards. MathLand, its K-5 program, does not meet the standards.